1. Water
The tap water in Sofia is drinkable. You can drink straight from the tap with no issues. There is also mineral spring at Central Mineral Baths and a lot of locals go there to fill bottles with free mineral water.

2. Money
Exchange money at banks or exchange bureaus. Make sure you read all the small print before exchanging. Always compare the given exchange rate with the current rates online to be sure. Exchange rate of EUR and BGN is fixed at 1.95 BGN for 1 EUR so if you see that the exchange bureau is selling you Bulgarian Leva for less, avoid it! We recommend you this exchange bureau.

3. ATMs
Use ATMs attached to banks. Otherwise use your best judgement and don’t take money out from some shady street corners.

4. Credit Cards

One should not experience any problems using his credit card in Sofia already. Almost everywhere you can pay cashless. If you planning to go to the coutryside we recommend you to use cash but big cities and tourist places are ok.

5. Tipping
Tipping is a choice everyone makes based on the satisfaction from the service provided but it is expected for restaurants, taxis and tourist guides. We recommend 10% for decent service and 15% for fabulous service. For taxis you can round to the closest leva.

6. Electric outlets
Bulgaria uses type F outlets and the standard voltage is 230 volts. If your country has a standard voltage between 220-240 (like the UK and rest of Europe, as well as Australia, some Asia, and some Africa) you can use your electric appliances without a voltage converter.

7. Taxi stands and taxi apps
Be careful with taxis in Sofia. Never talk to anybody at the arrivals hall at the airport offering you to give you a ride to the city. We know this sounds like a normal rule to follow and everybody knows it but so many people pay a lot of money to get to the center using scam drivers.

The official company that operates at the airport is Yellow Taxi and they have a booth inside the terminal where you book the taxi and then go out. The phone number is +359 2 9 11 19 and they also have an app you can use. Another registered company is OK Supertrans at +359 02 973 212.

The alternatives are different – Uber has been banned some years ago but you can use TaxiMe where you can store your credut card details and use it cashless just like Uber.

If you want to feel secure and stress free you can always book a transfer from the airport with us using the contact form.

8. Sofia Trams and buses
Actually the public transportation system in Sofia is getting better and better. You can find electronic schedules on the maid stops and the transportation is usually on time. The ticket is 1.60 lev for 60 min. and you can buy it with your credit card from a machine inside. The fine for travelling without a valid ticket is 40 lev. They recently also introduced 4 night lines that run from 0.00 till 04.00 in the morning. The cost for the ticket is 2 lev.

9. Sofia Metro
Very clean and costs only 1.60 lev. It is now connected with the Sofia airport so you can come to the city center very fast and easy. Serdica metro station is what you need for the city center. Metro map

10. Parking

If we have to be honest parking in Sofia can be annoying. In oder to send sms for paid blue and green zone you need to have a local sim card. You should send a text message to 1302 for Blue Zone. That will cost 2 leva per hour with a max time of two hours. The numebr for  Green Zone number is 1303,  costs 1 leva per hour and the max time is four hours. If you dont have a local sim card you should find a parking card to put on the windowshild. There are people in yellow vests walking on the streets that sell them.

What we recommend is to park in one of the paid public parkings – you can find our selections here.

11. Safety
Actually everyone’s opinion is that Sofia is quite a safe city. Pickpocketing is not often at all but it might happen. Be careful if you exploring the area where the Womens Market is located.  You can also walk at night without being harassed but of course mind the area where you do so like in every other city.

12. Pharmacies
You will be surprised how many pharmacies there are in Sofia. Litterally on every corner you can see the green cross, many of them open 24 hours. You can buy a lot of medicines over the counter but we recently introduced elecrtonic prescriptions so this should be getting harder – at least on paper. In the reality things are going on the same way.

13. Food Delivery
There are plenty of companies that offer food delivery as well as delivery for groceries. The most common ones for food are – www.foodpanda.com, www.takeaway.com. 

For groceries you can use www.ebag.bg.

14. Luggage drop off

There are several locations in the center. The newest one is at Serdika metro station which is at the end of the pedestrian part of Vitosha street. It is open 247, you can pay by credit card and the cost starts from 0.45 Euro per hour. The website is www.lockstars.eu.

15.Garbage
There are big silver bins on the streets where you can throw your garbage. The recycling bins – yellow for plastic and metal, blue for paper, green for glass- are also located in some places on the streets.

16. Visa rules
Bulgaria is part of the EU, but it is not yet part of Schengen unfotunately. That means that is you are a digital nomad you need to get out of the Schengen Zone for 90 days! For more specific information you can take a look at the website of Ministry of Foreign Affairs.